NASCAR Regional power rankings: Patrick Emerling makes big move; Connor Hall keeps climbing

The NASCAR Regional platform features the ARCA Menards Series, the NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour and the NASCAR Local Racing Series Powered by O'Reilly Auto Parts, and the drivers who compete in those series are, in many cases, the future of NASCAR's national series. As selected by the NASCAR Regional editorial team, here are the top 10 NASCAR Regional drivers from ARCA, Mods and the Local Racing Series as of July 13, 2026.

10. Matt Hirschman

Matt Hirschman needed a strong run at Seekonk Speedway on July 1 after finishes of 20th, 17th and 16th in the previous three NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour races. He did that and more with a statement victory after starting fourth.

Hirschman took that momentum to the Clash at Claremont on July 10, when he won the American Racer Pole Award and finished second in the race. “Big Money” still has some work to do to climb the Modified Tour standings, but the last two races suggest he’s back in the mix as one of the drivers to beat on any given weekend.

9. Austin Beers

The defending NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour champion is back on track after a season-worst 11th at Oxford Plains Speedway on June 6. He won the American Racer Pole Award at Seekonk Speedway on July 1 and finished fifth in the race. He followed that with another top-five run on July 10 in the Clash at Claremont, a fourth-place result. Beers is now just five points behind leader Patrick Emerling in the Modified Tour championship standings.

8. Jake Bollman

Thomas Annunziata’s win at Lime Rock Park on July 10 might have placed him at the top of the ARCA Menards Series standings had Jake Bollman not turned in yet another strong performance, as well. Bollman finished fifth on the road course, his eighth top five in 12 ARCA Menards Series races this season. That remarkable consistency keeps him atop the standings as the series enters its stretch run.

7. Cole Denton

Cole Denton will turn 16 at the end of July, and he’s already established himself as a championship contender in the ARCA Menards Series West. He turned in an impressive fourth-place finish at Sonoma Raceway in his ARCA road-course debut on June 26, a performance that followed his dominant win from the pole at Washington’s Tri-City Raceway early in the month.

He’s a couple more strong runs away from pushing Trevor Huddleston at the top of the West Series championship standings.

6. Trevor Ward

Death, taxes, and Trevor Ward running top three at Virginia’s South Boston Speedway in 2026.

After four consecutive runner-up finishes at SoBo, Ward on July 11 returned to Victory Lane for the third time this season. The remarkable consistency this year has Ward ranked second in the NASCAR Local Racing Series national championship points standings, and he’s showing no signs of slowing down at the title race heats up.

5. Connor Hall

The two-time NASCAR Local Racing Series national champion is at it again this season. Connor Hall won again at Langley Speedway on July 11, his sixth consecutive win at his home track, where he hasn’t lost this season. The streak of dominance has catapulted Hall to the top 10 in the NASCAR Local Racing Series national championship points.

4. Mitch Keeter

Perhaps the only reason Mitch Keeter didn’t win the weekend of July 11 is the fact that he didn’t race. (Salina Highbanks Speedway’s event was rained out.) Still, Keeter has won almost every feature at Salina this season, including the last two in June.

The Keeter Meter is on high for the NASCAR Local Racing Series Division I national championship points leader.

3. Thomas Annunziata

Thomas Annunziata entered the July 10 Lime Rock Park ARCA 100 having earned three consecutive Sioux Chief PowerPEX Pole Awards in the ARCA Menards Series, which is why it was a bit shocking when the road-course specialist qualified second on the Connecticut track. That, of course, didn’t matter.

Annunziata took the lead early and dominated the race on the way to his second Lime Rock win in as many seasons. His current hot streak has him just eight points behind Jake Bollman in the ARCA Menards Series championship standings.

2. Trevor Huddleston

Trevor Huddleston’s ninth-place finish at Sonoma Raceway on June 26 was by far his worst result of the season, which says a lot about what he’s done in 2026. Before that, he scored finishes of second, first, first and second in a four-race span in the ARCA Menards Series West. The defending series champ remains a favorite to repeat.

1. Patrick Emerling

When Patrick Emerling was interviewed by NASCAR Regional in mid-June, he claimed his NASCAR Whelen Modified Tour season to that point wasn’t up to his team’s standards. After that, he ran third at Seekonk Speedway and won the Clash at Claremont, the latter of which marked his 10th career series victory. The new Modified Tour points leader is now officially a title contender, in case he wasn’t before.